Blyth Neighbourhood Plan Consultation
*Deadline for the consultation has been extended to Wednesday 7 February 2024.*
Feedback highlighted how much our community value our green spaces and heritage. As a result, we have been considering possible areas to be protected in our neighbourhood plan.
Before we prepare our draft neighbourhood plan, we need your views on potential areas of green space and non-designated heritage assets.
The maps below show the location of the proposed green spaces and heritage assets are available here
We need your views on our important green spaces and heritage assets
Last year the Town Council started work to develop a neighbourhood plan to give the local community a much stronger role in shaping their area. Last summer we asked for feedback on the types of issues our plan could look to address.
Feedback highlighted how much our community value our green spaces and heritage. As a result, we have been considering possible areas to be protected in our neighbourhood plan. Before we prepare our draft neighbourhood plan, we need your views on potential areas of green space and non-designated heritage assets.
We need your comments by Wednesday 31 January 2024 - Extended to Wednesay 7 February.
Green Spaces
In our plan we can identify areas to be protected from inappropriate development by allocating them as local green space. To do this, they must meet nationally defined requirements and must also be demonstrably special to the local community, which should be for at least one of the following reasons: beauty, history, recreational value, tranquillity or richness of wildlife. The plan can also identify areas of protected open space, which could include sites that do not meet the detailed local green space criteria.
We considered 100 sites by assessing them against the requirements of national planning policy and as a result, we are proposing to allocate 31 sites as local green space, these include 10 allotment sites, Isabella Heap and Isabella Field, Newsham Pond, Broadway Field, New Delaval Park, Cowpen Recreation Ground, Ridley Park and South Beach and six sites as protected open space, which includes the land next to Blyth Sports Centre.
A summary of the sites proposed for allocation is available here and the full assessment report is available here.
Heritage Assets
Heritage assets may be designated or non-designated. Designated heritage assets include World Heritage Sites, scheduled monuments, listed buildings and conservation areas. They are all protected by law. Non-designated heritage assets can be identified in different ways including through neighbourhood plans.
The effect of identifying a non-designated heritage asset would not place restrictions on the ‘asset’, or introduce additional consent requirements over and above those already required for planning permission. It can, however, help to inform planning decisions in a way that conserves and enhances local character and identity.
We assessed over 400 buildings/sites and as a result we are proposing to identify 62 non-designated heritage assets within the neighbourhood plan, these include: the Beach Bandstand, Blyth Civic Centre, the Chapel of Ease on Links Road, the Old Co-op on Croft Road, the Customs House and Old Chandlery on Ridley Street, the Library and Post Office on Bridge Street, Quayside House on Sussex Street and the Presbytery on Waterloo Road.
A summary of all of the buildings/sites proposed for allocation is available here and the full assessment report is available here.
We need your feedback:
♦ Do you agree with the proposed allocations?
♦ Is there any more information we could capture as to why they are important?
Comments can be submitted in the following ways:
♦ By using online the form - Neighbourhood Plan Response Form | Blyth Town Council;
♦ By downloading the response form and emailing or posting it to us;
♦ By sending an email to us info@blythtowncouncil.gov.uk; or
♦ By writing to us at: Arms Evertyne House, Quay Road, Blyth, NE24 2AS
Hard copies of the documents are available to view at Blyth Library, Project Space in the Keel Row, Isabella Community Centre, Briardale House and Buffalo Community Centre (please check opening times before attending any of these locations).
We will use your comments to inform a draft neighbourhood plan, which we hope to consult on early next year. The plan will be amended following feedback and it will be submitted to Northumberland County Council who will arrange an independent examination. There will then be a referendum and all those registered to vote within the town will be able to vote on whether they support the plan.